HEGLA appoints additional managing director and authorised signatories

On 1st December 2021, Ingolf Ripberger, 57, will join the current Executive Board members Jochen H. Hesselbach, Bernhard Hötger and Dr Heinrich Ostendarp, taking on oversight responsibility for the Production, Technology, Supply Chain & Human Resources departments.

“We are delighted to have acquired Mr Ripberger, a professional who is recognised industry-wide and familiar with glass as a material and its processing,” said Bernhard Hötger. “He also has personal experience with the applications and solutions of the HEGLA Group.” Previously, Mr Ripberger worked in a technical and commercial management role for the Saint-Gobain Group in Germany and internationally for over 25 years. He has a degree in electrical engineering and also completed a degree in business administration at RWTH Aachen.

Bernhard Hötger, who has held various positions at HEGLA since 1984, will become CEO of the HEGLA Group on 1st December 2021. He will continue to be responsible for Sales and Marketing, and supervise the operation of the international subsidiaries and sales agencies.

Dr Heinrich Ostendarp will focus on strategic and operational product development, as well as the integration and further development of the subsidiaries and the product areas of tempering furnaces for safety glass (HEGLA-TaiFin), laser applications (HEGLA boraident) and software and automation (HEGLA-HANIC).

Jochen H. Hesselbach will remain a member of the Executive Board of the HEGLA Group but will focus more intensively on his role as CEO of the 100% parent LEWAG Holding AG and forge ahead with the strategic alignment and assessment of new shareholdings or subsidiaries and potential collaborative partnerships.

Authorised signatories to set a new course and strengthen competencies

To adapt the structures of the HEGLA below Board level to the growth of the company, two further senior members of staff have been appointed as authorised signatories. Josef Kusserow (Head of Production) and Georg Dressler (Head of Strategic Purchasing) are now authorised to represent the HEGLA site in Beverungen.

In a collective meeting to make the authorisation official, Managing Director Bernhard Hötger emphasised that this step demonstrates significant trust in the abilities and know-how of the authorised signatories. “By handing over these far-reaching competencies, we are further strengthening HEGLA and setting the course for continued success in the future,” said the Managing Director.

The HEGLA Group, which was founded by the HEsselbach and GLAser families in 1976 and has mechanical and automotive engineering, long goods and sheet metal storage technology divisions, exceeded a total revenue of €100 million for the first time in 2019, the year before COVID.

The company expects further growth after the COVID pandemic, thanks to the acquisition of laser application specialist HEGLA boraident in Halle/Saale in 2017, a majority shareholding in software provider HEGLA-HANIC in Bochum-Wattenscheid (ERP and MES systems) acquired in 2018, and a majority shareholding in the Finnish company HEGLA-TaiFin, which specialises in the development and production of high-quality glass tempering furnaces for architectural glass and glass bending furnaces for vehicle glass, acquired in 2019.

Operating as a group, HEGLA can now offer comprehensive solutions for glass processing from a single source and focus even more strongly on its innovation course towards digitalisation/Industry 4.0 and integrated shop-floor logistics, which is has embarked upon with the expansion of its product portfolio.